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Thing is that the situation is more of the "You made you bed, now lie in it" for Blizzard. At par with the whole influence of Activision:Blizzard as a profit based company, they have been slowly working to switch branding strategies and sacrificing other "things" in order to achieve these new goals. They strained all of their franchises fan bases to the point of rupture; and now, at the very pinnacle of that stress, they have realized that all of that hard work has lead to an alley with no exit, 5 meter high walls, and barbed wire on top.

China is not a demon country. They are a group of humans like the rest of us. However their political life has lead them to a "China first" mentality that created a sense of superiority and strong unity among its citizens and government. They have realized the strength in this, and constantly push towards a more Chinese way of life within and abroad. A fragmented west, a poor Latin America and Africa, and a threat of economic recession amplifies this sentiment of providing a better life for China, or sustaining the wealth they have.

This is the business partner Blizzard elected to have. In retrospective it might be easy to point out that mistake now, yet no one feared China when they were clearly underdeveloped as an economy ten years ago. Blizzard's actions on the past two days might have been the right call in order to make some better calls later. However, they can elect to keep pushing their luck with how dangerous China can be towards threats. Of course, doing this just to grab out some money. This, however, will risk employee lives and the welfare of many affiliated groups like casters, pro-players, etc.

I wish Blizzard would act out of common sense here and pull out their foreign employees from China and sell the office to Tensent. Yea, they might lose control over their own IPs, but they got everyone into this mess considering everything. They have no real control anyways, when the most you can do is an economical "damage" and they can kill off your employees or take your properties.

Valve and Riot apparently also had heavy rules against mentioning the Hong Kong conflict in their mayor tournaments. However, neither company has a fan base that feels rejected, humiliated, and abused as does the Blizzard communities. So, there was no issue. For Blizzard, on the other hand, this was just another nail in the coffin. Who knows which will be last.

"To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize"

In the midst of Blizzard's ongoing silence, there are small tidbits here and there.

It seems Blizzard is willing to penalize China's subjects, but refrains -- so far! -- from attacking Americans' free speech.

Whenever financial trade between countries is conducted, cultural exchange inevitably follows. And with so many American-based companies capitulating to China's demands, I foresee an ongoing erosion of civil rights in our country.

Last edited by Visions of Khas; 10-11-2019 at 11:55 AM.

Aaand sold.

Be it through hallowed grounds or lands of sorrow
The Forger's wake is bereft and fallow

Is the residuum worth the cost of destruction and maiming;
Or is the shaping a culling and exercise in taming?

The road's goal is the Origin of Being
But be wary through what thickets it winds.

I want to take a few minutes to talk to all of you about the Hearthstone Grandmasters tournament this past weekend. On Monday, we made the decision to take action against a player named blitzchung and two shoutcasters after the player shared his views on what’s happening in Hong Kong on our official broadcast channel.

At Blizzard, our vision is “to bring the world together through epic entertainment.” And we have core values that apply here: Think Globally; Lead Responsibly; and importantly, Every Voice Matters, encouraging everybody to share their point of view. The actions that we took over the weekend are causing people to question if we are still committed to these values. We absolutely are and I will explain.

Our esports programs are an expression of our vision and our values. Esports exist to create opportunities for players from around the world, from different cultures, and from different backgrounds, to come together to compete and share their passion for gaming. It is extremely important to us to protect these channels and the purpose they serve: to bring the world together through epic entertainment, celebrate our players, and build diverse and inclusive communities.

As to how those values apply in this case:

First, our official esports tournament broadcast was used as a platform for a winner of this event to share his views with the world.

We interview competitors who are at the top of their craft to share how they feel. We want to experience that moment with them. Hearing their excitement is a powerful way to bring us together.

Over the weekend, blitzchung used his segment to make a statement about the situation in Hong Kong—in violation of rules he acknowledged and understood, and this is why we took action.

Every Voice Matters, and we strongly encourage everyone in our community to share their viewpoints in the many places available to express themselves. However, the official broadcast needs to be about the tournament and to be a place where all are welcome. In support of that, we want to keep the official channels focused on the game.

Second, what is the role of shoutcasters for these broadcasts?

We hire shoutcasters to amplify the excitement of the game. They elevate the watchability and help the esports viewing experience stay focused on the tournament and our amazing players.

Third, were our actions based on the content of the message?

Part of Thinking Globally, Leading Responsibly, and Every Voice Matters is recognizing that we have players and fans in almost every country in the world. Our goal is to help players connect in areas of commonality, like their passion for our games, and create a sense of shared community.

The specific views expressed by blitzchung were NOT a factor in the decision we made. I want to be clear: our relationships in China had no influence on our decision.

We have these rules to keep the focus on the game and on the tournament to the benefit of a global audience, and that was the only consideration in the actions we took.

If this had been the opposing viewpoint delivered in the same divisive and deliberate way, we would have felt and acted the same.

OK, what could Blizzard have done better, and where do we go from here?

Over the past few days, many players, casters, esports fans, and employees have expressed concerns about how we determined the penalties. We’ve had a chance to pause, to listen to our community, and to reflect on what we could have done better. In hindsight, our process wasn’t adequate, and we reacted too quickly.

We want to ensure that we maintain a safe and inclusive environment for all our players, and that our rules and processes are clear. All of this is in service of another important Blizzard value—Play Nice; Play Fair.

In the tournament itself blitzchung *played* fair. We now believe he should receive his prizing. We understand that for some this is not about the prize, and perhaps for others it is disrespectful to even discuss it. That is not our intention.

But playing fair also includes appropriate pre-and post-match conduct, especially when a player accepts recognition for winning in a broadcast. When we think about the suspension, six months for blitzchung is more appropriate, after which time he can compete in the Hearthstone pro circuit again if he so chooses. There is a consequence for taking the conversation away from the purpose of the event and disrupting or derailing the broadcast.

With regard to the casters, remember their purpose is to keep the event focused on the tournament. That didn’t happen here, and we are setting their suspension to six months as well.

Moving forward, we will continue to apply tournament rules to ensure our official broadcasts remain focused on the game and are not a platform for divisive social or political views.

One of our goals at Blizzard is to make sure that every player, everywhere in the world, regardless of political views, religious beliefs, race, gender, or any other consideration always feels safe and welcome both competing in and playing our games.

At Blizzard, we are always listening and finding ways to improve—it is part of our culture. Thank you for your patience with us as we continue to learn.

Sincerely,

J. Allen Brack
President of Blizzard Entertainment

In the words of Alarak:

"You lie with such conviction. It's almost admirable."

Last edited by Visions of Khas; 10-12-2019 at 08:27 AM.

Aaand sold.

Be it through hallowed grounds or lands of sorrow
The Forger's wake is bereft and fallow

Is the residuum worth the cost of destruction and maiming;
Or is the shaping a culling and exercise in taming?

The road's goal is the Origin of Being
But be wary through what thickets it winds.

IMO, a worse offense apart from the twisted logic used to justify the bans (which honetly I now understand as a way to kick politics out of a scene were they don't belong) is the double speak which this letter is full of. It just confirms everything we've known so far about the shit they have done. It's just badly written and it's a real shame if Mr. J. did actually write this. It contains little to no understanding on what the original meaning of these values was.

Think globally: As Mike said so many years ago, it's about creating a SINGLE, WORLD community with a core joy for games. That allowed you to play with people; and make friends from all around the world. Leading Responsibly: Was about being aware of the power they held... so ironic. It was the cornerstore of Blizzard's role as leader in the video game industry. "Is this game fun? will this improve gameplay? should we do this?" were all questions you could find on the interviews with the execs. Every Voice Matters: Was never about politics or respecting opinions/differences. It was meant to show their commitment towards hearing their whole fanbase, regardless of it's size. Creating games or content for everyone. Hell, there was a huge rule on the original forums about not creating massive petitions, ilmao.

A cute throwback (Probably only Samwise and Chris Sigaty work there still, RIP everyone else):